The Rule of Three
by Yami's Chan
Summary: Someone is trying to get rid of the Princeton brothers but the police have no idea who is beheind it. With Slade lying in a hospital bed and Jagger at his side, it looks like it's up to Chazz to find their attacker. But will time run out?
1. Intro

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The Rule of Three

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Chan: hi guys, i don't know how this story came about apart from the fact that i love all 3 of the princeton brothers!!! even if Slade and Jagger can be aslightly (!) evill. Just they are not a sevil as they arte in my other fics. 

Chazz: oh so my bros might finally be nice to me in this fic.

Chan: that's the least of the things you sould be worried bout. Warnings: not just Chazz-abuse but Jagger-abuse and especially SLADE-abuse. but i still love the bros to bits. swearing, violence, major angst...i'm putting up the rating high so no sensitive people read it, and if they do then don't say i didn't warn you. Hope you enjoy it, and i also hope you don't mind longish gaps between updates. here is the first chapter!

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Intro

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****Normal P.O.V. **

Blood. It was only a little at first but then more. Lots. Too much. His first reaction was shock, but then the Princeton boy realised, with a wave of pain, exactly what had just happened. Less than half a second later, he fell to the ground. Time seemed to have stood still whilst the bullet made contact, but now all hell broke loose.

His eyes were having trouble staying open and his lips moved without sound. His brother fell to his side with a scream that was so out of character for him.

"No!" the brother yelled, pressing a hand to the injured boys wound in an attempt to stem the flow of blood. People were shouting, screaming, even crying. To the two on the ground however everything seemed silent; to one because his panic and fear over ruled everything else and the other because he was sliding out of consciousness for what he feared may be his final time.

In all the confusion of people phoning for ambulances and police, searching for anyone who might have even some first aid skills and generally just running around no one had done the one vital thing. No one had looked to see where the shot had been fired from. No one knew who had just attempted, and possibly succeeded in murdering Slade Princeton.

"Slade, please stay with me." Jagger whispered, cradling the still form of his elder sibling to him. Slade did not respond. For the first time in years Jagger was crying. Tears rolled down his face and he watched as the splashed against the hard ground. The sound of sirens reached his ears, as though from a long way off. Even then it seemed like hours until the paramedics finally got there.

Jagger could do nothing but sit there and watch, helplessly as paramedics gave his brother oxygen, checked for any signs of life and a thousand other things while lifting him onto a stretcher. He was dimly ware of someone helping to sit down and trying to reassure him it would be alright. But he knew it wouldn't be alright. Someone had shot his brother and things were looking really bad for him.

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It was gone midnight and Chazz was fast asleep. He'd been having headaches on and off all day and now the last thing he needed was a late night duel spirit party. However his peaceful sleep was disturbed, all too soon, by someone shaking his shoulder. He opened his eyes ready to swat away whichever Ojama happened to be pestering him this time. He was shocked to see, not a duel monster, but… 

"Jagger!?" he yelped, removing his ear plugs and sitting up straight. "What are you doing here?"

Chazz could just about make out the silhouetted figures of the over slifer students standing in he doorway.

"Chazz, what's going on?" he could recognize Jaden's voice.

"I don't know…" as he finished his sentence he noticed for the first time just how tired Jagger looked. He had circles under his eyes.

"What's wrong Jagger? What happened?"

"…It's Slade…He's been shot…" it was at these words that two things happened. Jagger looked away so that Chazz would not see the tears in his eyes, and Chazz knew what it meant when his brothers had said before that their hearts sank.

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**End Chapter**

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**Chan: There we go, intro is finally done. it took several attempt and two differnt computers butthis time it should finally all be saved. -pokes Chazzie- 

Chazz: I'm not saying it! -pokes Slade-

Slade: how the heck did i get here!? -Sighs- ok I'll say it! R&R whoever is reading this.


	2. Beep

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The show is far too normal and un-warped for me to own it.

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Chan: here I am again, updating at 1pm lol. 

Chazz: I wish she'd just give up trying to write this and go to bed. No more Chazz-abuse

Chan: Sorry Chazzie! Oh, an extra warning for this chapter: a very, very, VERY small hint of yaoi towards the end. Will develop as the story goes by. Defiantly not incest. Enjoy! Coconut!

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Chapter One

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****Beep**

**Normal P.O.V. **

Chazz looked out of the helicopter as the water below rushed past. He hadn't said anything since they had left the academy, just stared out of the window, shivering slightly.

"You cold?" asked Jagger, breaking the silence.

"A bit." That was probably the understatement of the year. The two boys had been in such a hurry to go and see Slade that Chazz had just thrown on the nearest clothes to him, which turned out to be thin, made for summer. Jaden and the rest of his group of friends were coming to the hospital later, and had yelled after him that they'd bring him clothes then. He wished he'd thought to get something warmer. It was icy in the helicopter. He was shocked when a pair of arms wrapped round him from behind and pulled him close.

"Come here…" Jagger whispered pulling the smaller boy closer. Chazz rested his head against Jagger's chest and let a few tears run down his face. He thought that he'd be able to stop himself but the tears continued to flow and his shoulders began to shake.

"Shh." His older brother soothed. "He'll be fine, he's a Princeton. Tough as nails." Chazz smiled slightly and giggled through his tears. Slade had always said how Princetons were tougher than anyone else. Chazz just hoped that he was right.

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The heart rate monitor beeped slowly and steadily. In some, odd way, to Chazz it was sort of comforting. It was the only way of him knowing that Slade was still hanging on. 

The helicopter ride had been the slowest and longest ever, in Chazz's opinion, and once they got to the hospital they had to wait around even longer for what seemed like ages. Eventually they had been allowed in to see their eldest brother. It was awful seeing him like that. There were so many wires and tubes sticking into his skin that it looked like some demented science fiction movie was attacking him. A drip was slowly easing red, life giving liquid back into him, a breathing mask was placed over his mouth. A blanket was pulled up to his chin, hiding his wounds from view but Jagger knew exactly where they were. He'd spent so long pressing his hand to those wounds to stem the flow of blood until help arrived that he was sure that those images would be burned in his mind for life. The heart monitor beeped.

Chazz was curled up like a cat at the foot of the bed, staring blankly at plain white hospital sheets. Jagger was slowly stroking his hand through Chazz's hair. He was whispering under his breath, but he wasn't sure to which of the boys the words were intended for. Either way, one of them could not, and the other would not, answer him. They'd been in the room for quite some time when there was a soft knocking on the door.

"Chazz? The nurse said Slade would be in here so we-" Jaden's voice cut off as he poked his head round the door and spotted his friend. "Oh, is he asleep?"

Jagger shook his head and sighed, leaning back in his chair. Chazz followed the others as they entered the room with his eyes without getting up. Jagger watched too.

"Shut the door…" he mumbled to Syrus who was last in. his voice was thick with tears that he knew were not just because of Slade. They were years' worth of suppressed sadness and emotion. He shut his eyes firmly, teeth gritted. That is until he felt someone grip his shoulder. He turned and looked up at…Zane!?

They locked eyes, the millionaire and the academy's star pupil. They'd never spoken to each other, never even properly looked directly at each other. But now, by some weird twist of fate, they had one thing in common. They both knew what it felt like to have a brother that you would give the whole universe for. Well, _brothers _in Jagger's case. There was a chance no one would ever know what silent words passed between those two just then, but whatever it was, it must have been the right thing. They looked away and the tears were no longer so close to the surface of Jagger's eyes.

"It's late." He announced. "You should all be asleep."

"You can't tell me what to do." But Jaden yawned even as he said it. Jagger just got up and knelt beside his smallest brother.

"Are you going to sleep now?" there was no answer. "Your friends brought you clothes if you wanna get changed." Still no answer but Jagger nodded anyway. He unzipped Chazz's jacket and removed the smaller boy's shoes before covering him in a spare blanket.

"He's tired. He doesn't want to get changed he just wants to sleep." Jaden opened his mouth to ask how Jagger knew this only to have his foot trodden on by Zane.

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Time Passes (an hour or so)

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Only two people in the room were awake. The others were sprawled on chairs or the floor (or the bed in the case of Slade and Chazz). 

"You should get some sleep too." Zane suggested, as gently as he could, retaking the seat opposite Jagger. "You'll be doing no one any good if you faint from exhaustion."

"I know." The other replied. "But I can't sleep, not like this….not here…" if Jagger had any more 'nots' in his head then they were cut off when Zane reached across the bed and offered him a can of drink.

"Not near the medical equipment!" he hissed as he took it from the outstretched hand and held it out of view.

"Bet you haven't drunk anything all day either." Zane chuckled, but only out of sympathy. There wasn't a reply which Zane knew meant no.

Jagger's eyelids started to droop after only having a few mouthfuls of the drink. His head leant forwards until his chin was resting on his chest. He took another sip, but far from waking himself up, he felt more tired than ever. Zane grabbed the drink seconds before Jagger would have dropped it. Something clicked inside of Jagger's head.

"You…You tricked me!" he half yelped, half yawned. "What did you put in there!?"

"Relax. It was only a sleeping pill. You'll thank me in the morning." The Obelisk student's voice was deep and calming. "Just sit there and let yourself sleep."

"Like I have an option." These were the last words spoken before the middle child of the Princeton family fell into what both himself and Zane hopped would be a dreamless sleep. Zane drifted off, watching the young man's face.

The Heart rate monitor beeped, slowly but steadily……for now.

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**End Chapter**

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Chan: here we go, sorry if it took so long for this update.

Slade: ….I don't like the sound of that last sentence much.

Chazz: -sigh- you're not meant to, it's a cliff hanger. If people review a lot, she'll update quicker.

Slade: hmm….now how to block people from leaving reviews….

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	3. The Morning

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I really, really, don't own GX

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Chan: Hello there. This story has gotten quite popular so I decided to update it. 

Chazz: Well, at least it's not a Chazz abuse fic.

Slade: no, it's one that tortures me instead.

Chan: be quiet both of you and let m write or I might just have to kill one of you off.

Chazz: -silent-

Slade: -silent

Chan: That's better!

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Chapter 2

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****The Morning**

**Chazz's P.O.V. **

I woke up the next morning to find myself curled up on top of something very soft. My body was aching slightly from the awkward position I had been in all night. Someone was gently stoking my hair and I could hear whispered voices. It took me a moment before I remembered exactly what had happened and when I did I wished I hadn't.

I yawned and sat up on the bed, causing Jagger to move his hand off of me. Jaden and Zane were there too, but I couldn't see any of the others.

"Good morning Chazz." Said Jagger. He didn't sound like it was a good morning. Really, I couldn't blame him. Slade's eyes were still shut and his body was still, kept breathing by those machines alone. I reached out and touched the back of his hand. I don't know what I was expecting, but whatever it was it wasn't what I felt. Slade's skin was icy cold. I felt myself shiver, even though I was actually quite warm. Jagger noticed this and put a hand over mine, pulling it gently away from Slade.

"Look, Chazz, why don't you and Jaden go get something to eat?" he said. I knew this was just an excuse to get me out of the room, but I didn't care. I nodded mutely and stood off the bed, slipping my shoes on.

Most times I can never get Jaden to shut up, but just then he didn't say anything. He was quiet as we walked all the way along the seemingly endless white corridors away from Slade's room. He was quiet when we got to the hospital restaurant. I could smell food. The horrible stench of grease reached my nose and I suddenly felt sick.

"Chazz?" it was Jaden. He was looking at me with a worried expression on his face. "You ok?" I nodded even though I wasn't.

"I'm…fine." my voice shook dreadfully. Jaden didn't seem to notice though.

"Good. I'm starving, come on." He grabbed my sleeve and tugged me into the queue, ignoring the fact I was trying to mutter protests. Although, he did slip one arm around my elbow so we were linked, so perhaps he did notice something was up.

I didn't want anything to eat. Jaden ordered a full breakfast and then stood there watching me, balancing his tray in one arm.

"I'm not hungry." I told him.

"Rubbish."

"Well how would you feel, if it was your brother and…" I couldn't finish my sentence. Jaden looked stunned and for a second I thought he was about to start _crying_. But instead he gently put his free hand on my shoulder.

"Staving yourself isn't going to do you, or Slade, any good. Imagine how he'd feel knowing you haven't been eating because of him. He needs you to be there for him when he wakes up." it was the first time Jaden had ever been that serious. I blinked at him. We went back into silence after that as I picked up a bowel of fruit which didn't look like it'd be too hard to eat.

So I spent Saturday morning sitting with Jaden in the corner of the hospital restaurant. He finished his food ages before I finished mine even though he had so much more than me. In a way I was actually hoping he might offer to finish mine off, but he didn't.

"Come on Chazz, eat up." he said. So I had to. He didn't let me leave until I'd eaten everything. It felt very strange in my stomach; I could taste bile in my mouth and I thought I was about to throw it straight back up again.

"Sit there." said Jaden. He left the table for a bit and when he came back he had a large glass of water with ice floating in it. I sipped it until the taste went away and I felt well enough go back to the room.

Zane was standing outside when we got back. He had his head bowed; brushing tiny specks of dirt off of his uniform even though it's always spotless.

"Zane?" I asked. "What's wrong?" I started to panic. "Is Slade ok?"

"He's fine, Chazz." Said Zane. "Well...you know…same as he was."

"Why are you out here then?" it was Jaden speaking this time.

"Because Jagger said he wanted to be alone with him." he turned and looked at me. "Maybe he'll let you in though, Chazz." I nodded and carefully pushed open the door.

Jagger had his back to the door so he didn't see me come in.

"Zane?" he asked, turning around. "Oh, Chazz, hi." He tried to smile but it faltered and slipped before long. He was gripping Slade's hand so tightly I was sure it must be hurting him. Jagger seemed to catch what I was looking at.

"Maybe he can feel it." I didn't respond verbally but instead I walked around to the other side of the bed and took Slade's other hand in my own.

"Why isn't he waking up?" it was the only question I'd been wanting to ask since it happened.

"The doctor said he's in a coma…" said Jagger, causing me to pale even more so. "don't worry Chazz, he might wake up at any time…" I knew Jagger didn't sound very hopeful but it was the only hope I had so I nodded. "We've got to talk to him though, because he can still hear us."

I wasn't sure if I exactly believed this, but I gave it a try anyway.

"Slade? Can you really hear me?" there was no response. Nothing. "it's me...Chazz." there wasn't much more I could say after that so we just sat there in silence until I looked up and noticed Jagger was shivering. He wasn't cold so I knew he had to be upset. I suddenly felt really weird. Jagger's my big brother but I suddenly knew that he needed _me_ to comfort _him_. Swallowing hard I got to my feet and walked over to him. Without saying a word I reached my hand out towards him and rested my fingers on his cheek. We used to do this when we were little, back when we were still scared of what our parents might do to us if we showed emotion. It kind of means 'I know you're a Princeton, so you wont cry, but if your eyes just did start to water a little bit, then I'd totally wipe away all your tears.'

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Normal P.O.V. **

_A boy was standing in a room. Was it his bedroom? It was more like a prison cell. There were bars on the glassless window and the gap on the heavy bolted door. He wondered how long it had been since anyone had entered the room. People kept walking past, but the rarely stopped for longer than to simply smirk through the bars in the door at him. From what he could tell, his room was one of the highest in the tower. When he went over to the window and looked down, the drop made his head spin. _

_He stepped back and pulled the long, hooded, black cloak he was wearing tighter around himself. He was tall, but it was difficult to tell how old he was due to all the shadow in the room. From somewhere very, very far away he thought he heard someone calling to him. No. Not heard, just felt it. Felt someone calling his name. But then he blinked and he was confident he had merely imagined it. _

_But then it happened again. Another voice…the boy shut his eyes and tried to listen. He thought he could recognize it. _

"_Who are you?" he whispered so quietly he could barley hear it himself. But then there was the sound of movement just outside the door, the bolt sliding back. And the voice, and whoever he had been almost about to think of, vanished from his mind._

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End Chapter

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Chan: there you go, how do you like it? I hope you find it good 

Chazz: What the heck are you doing to my brother?

Slade: aw, didn't know you cared Chazz.

Chazz: shut up. And who is that boy at the end?

Chan: you'll find out. Please review, everyone! If you spot any mistkae, just tell me.

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